Looking pretty fly

ONE of my fishing buddies has been on a proper fly-tying kick this year.

- LOUIS FEROX

A house move has retired his golf clubs and air rifles so there's a gap in his hobbies time.

It’s definitely improved his tying - he’s even got one of those writer's bureaus decked out with a bit of a fly-tying library building up.

There was a bit of chat about bushy bob flies and favourites for different times and places.

I feel like you get your own bias early on and those settle in over time. My pal up in Caithness will tell you it’s only blue Zulus you need but my other friend who fishes in Assynt wouldn't sully his cast with any variant on the original.

One of the boys fishes on the islands a lot and swears by a clan chief, a goat's toe and Loch Ordie as the go to flies up in Harris.